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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28322718">Better Late Than Never</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/stefanswarner/pseuds/stefanswarner'>stefanswarner</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Vampire Diaries (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bamon, F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 17:08:37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,566</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28322718</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/stefanswarner/pseuds/stefanswarner</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When Bonnie and Damon are sent out of town for a last minute Christmas mission, they are caught in a storm and forced to spend Christmas Eve in a hotel room. With the two of them alone, they are forced to confront their more complicated feelings for eachother.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Bonnie Bennett/Damon Salvatore</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>72</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Better Late Than Never</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, this one's for you Bamon Nation</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The radio buzzed to life as Damon turned the dial, prompting a deep voice to recite the weather that night. Damon rolled his eyes at the radio-- yes, he could see very well that it was snowing. Thanks for the ground-breaking news. </p><p>“I can’t believe you still use the radio.” Bonnie teased from the passenger seat. “Such an old man.” </p><p>“Old soul.” Damon corrected, side-eyeing the witch. </p><p>“Yeah, well, radio or not, your music taste is terrible.” Bonnie pointed out. “I’m not listening to it the entire ride.”</p><p>“And I don’t want to listen to you this entire ride, but we’re both making sacrifices here.” Damon fired back. At that, Bonnie turned her head to the side, the corner of her mouth quirking up. </p><p>“I’ve missed you too, Damon.” </p><p>Damon didn’t respond, but the smile he wore and the look in his eye was all Bonnie needed to see to know he felt the same. It was strange, how easily they fell back into their friendship, or whatever it was they had, after a year apart. They’d both returned to Mystic Falls to spend the holidays with Stefan, Elena and Caroline. </p><p>“Right,” Damon finally said, “You’ve been travelling the world. Seeing the most beautiful sights there are to see. I doubt I’ve even crossed your mind.” </p><p>Bonnie let out a weak laugh. “You’d be surprised.” </p><p>A comfortable silence fell over them, the sound of cars passing by on the Highway and static from the radio accompanying the sight of flakes falling. Bonnie tapped her foot. </p><p>“And you, you have your bar now. In the big city. I’ve heard great things.” Bonnie informed him. At the mention of his bar, Damon’s face lit up. </p><p>“It’s not bad.” He said, which meant he was having the time of his life. “You should stop by next time you’re around. I’ve even got a drink named after you.”</p><p>Bonnie’s smile widened. “What? Me?”</p><p>“Of course. I can’t run a bar and not name a drink after my best drinking buddy.” Damon reasoned. </p><p>“I’m honored.” </p><p>“You should be.”</p><p>“I bet this time of year is great for business.” Bonnie pointed out, “You decided to come home anyway?”</p><p>“There’s people I wanted to see.” Damon nodded, then coughed. “You know, I haven’t been able to see Stef as much lately. And when I heard my favorite witch would be stopping by, I couldn’t pass up a chance to ruin your holiday.” </p><p>Bonnie laughed, “Well it hasn’t been dull. Here we are, Christmas eve, on our way to some obscure bakery outside of town.”</p><p>“The only one left with Yule Log cakes.” Damon sighed, “I’ve never been the biggest fan.”</p><p>“Me, neither.” Bonnie admitted, “How did this become our job?”</p><p>“Well, Caroline had to make sure Josie and Lizzie were in bed. Elena and Stefan are setting up the presents for the morning. I guess we had to make ourselves useful somehow.” Damon shrugged. Bonnie was surprised by how unbothered he was by it. She’s prepared herself for lots of complaining about last-minute planning and Christmas traffic. But as they sat in the car, they were both perfectly comfortable. Even as the traffic worsened, there was no sense of urgency or unease. It was almost like time had halted all together. </p><p>As they neared the bakery, the sun disappeared in the sky and the clouds turned darker. Bonnie looked up through the window, her brows creasing as she noted the snow was falling harder and faster. </p><p>“Isn’t there some spell that can stop this storm?” </p><p>“You know that’s not how it works.” Bonnie rolled her eyes. “Is Damon afraid of a little snow?”<br/>
\<br/>
“Damon is worried about his car.” He countered. </p><p>“We should be fine.” Bonnie assured him, “Car and all. It shouldn’t get too bad until we get back to the house.”</p><p>“So you can’t control the snow, but you can predict what it’ll do?” </p><p>“It’s just optimism. It wouldn’t kill you to try it sometime.” Bonnie sighed. </p><p>“For you, maybe.” Damon allowed. “Indifferent, at least.”</p><p>“That’s all I can ask for.” Bonnie laughed again. Damon smiled fondly; he’d missed that sound. He’d missed her.</p><p>They arrived at the bakery not long after, and because most sane people don’t do their Christmas shopping the night before, it was fairly empty. Damon and Bonnie were able to get the cake and get out. Unfortunately, as they walked out the door and towards the car, Bonnie was nearly knocked over by a gust of wind. Damon held out an arm to steady her, holding on tightly to the cake with the other. The storm had worsened greatly in just the few minutes they were in the bakery. Swarms of ice surrounded them, making it impossible to see. The roads would be impossible to get through.</p><p>It was a miracle they even made it to the car. Damon shut his door with a long exhale, and brushed the snow from his hair. He looked over to see Bonnie doing the same. He was close enough to see the sparkle of the snow against her wettened eyelashes. She looked so effortlessly beautiful, coming out of a snow storm. It was almost infuriating. </p><p>“We should wait for the storm to calm down. It isn’t safe to drive all the way back into town.” Damon decided. Bonnie made no arguments, still shivering from the chill. </p><p>“How long do you think it’ll be?” She asked. The weatherman on the radio answered that for her, informing them that it would only be getting worse that night. Bonnie groaned. </p><p>“What are we going to do?”</p><p>Damon shrugged. “There’s a hotel down the road. We could see if they have any rooms left. We leave first thing in the morning, and make it in time for Christmas dinner.”<br/>
Bonnie nodded. She was exhausted and cold, and any place warm sounded good to her. They moved slowly as they drove down the street and to a small hotel. At the front desk was an older man, jotting down notes in a large binder in front of him. Whatever it was, he was quite immersed. Bonnie and Damon stood there for several long seconds, unnoticed, before Damon pressed the bell on the desk. </p><p>“Hi.” He said loudly, causing the man to jump. “We need a couple of rooms.”</p><p>Bonnie glared at Damon, but nodded at the man. “Please.” She added.</p><p>Looking slightly annoyed, the man flipped through his binder. “We’re pretty much booked…” He muttered to himself. Bonnie’s heart sank. </p><p>“Oh! There’s one room left. End of the second floor, on your left. Can I get a name?” </p><p>Damon gave the man their information as Bonnie stepped away to call Elena. She let her know they’d be staying at a hotel for the night, and would be back first thing the next day. By the time she was finished, Damon stood waiting with a key in hand. They walked together up the second floor. It was an old hotel, Bonnie noted. The floors creaked as they walked, the walls shook a bit with the wind. But there was an aged sort of charm to the place. It was cozy. </p><p>The room was pretty nice, Damon had seen worse. There was a bed, a fireplace, and a closet for each of them. Not that either would be using it, seeing as they hadn’t planned for an overnight trip. On the other side of the room was a short couch and a chair. To their left, a kitchenette with a stove and microwave.<br/>
Bonnie shivered, still not warmed up yet. She wrapped her arms around her body, rubbing her arms up and down. Seeing this, Damon took the nearest blanket off the bed and threw it around Bonnie’s shoulders. </p><p>“I don’t need you getting sick.” Damon murmured, then walked over to the room’s thermostat. After turning up the heat, he fell into the couch, kicking his feet up. Dragging the blanket with her, Bonnie sat in the chair beside him.</p><p>“Merry Christmas to us, huh?” Bonnie laughed.</p><p>“What happened to that optimism of yours?” Damon teased. “This isn’t so bad, just the two of us. It actually kind of reminds me of…”<br/>
Bonnie tensed as Damon trailed off, immediately knowing what he was referring to. They didn’t talk about it much, their time in the prison world. They definitely didn’t talk about it fondly. </p><p>“You hated that.” Bonnie pointed out. “We both did.”</p><p>Damon nodded. “It wasn’t all so bad, though.”</p><p>From her chair, Bonnie’s eyes met Damon’s. There was an unspoken question her gaze, and no clear answer in his. </p><p>“No, not all of it.”</p><p>As much as she hated it, Bonnie suddenly missed the static of that radio. At least it would be something to cut through the silence. </p><p>Damon cleared his throat. “You know, we never talked about it.”</p><p>“We don’t have to.” Bonnie said, meaning to sound nonchalant, but not managing to tame the slight shake in her voice. The sense of alarm. There was a long pause before Damon spoke again. </p><p>“We don’t, but if you ever wanted to…”</p><p>“What is there to say?” Bonnie snapped. Realizing her words came out sharper than she meant them to, she slowed down. “It’s not like it meant anything. We were lonely. It was possible that we’d be there alone forever.”</p><p>“Right.” Damon nodded, masking the pang in his chest with a forced smile. “Didn’t mean anything. That’s what I thought.” </p><p>Bonnie pressed her lips together and turned away. </p><p>“Sorry, I shouldn’t have brought it up.” Damon apologized, but there was an edge to his voice. </p><p>“Then why did you?” Bonnie turned back around, everything about her body language accusatory. “The time to talk about it has passed. It happened, we got back, and we pretended it didn’t. Why change that now?”</p><p>“Because maybe I wish I hadn’t.” The words fell out of Damon’s mouth before he could stop them. “I wish I hadn’t pretended it never happened.” </p><p>Bonnie shook her head. She stood up from her chair, dropping her blanket. “No, you don’t get to do that now. It’s been years, Damon. Not one word. Not when you were with Elena, not after you two broke up. Not when I left.”</p><p>“I didn’t know you wanted me to!” Damon protested, “You just said it didn’t mean anything.” He brought his feet down from the couch, turning his body around to face Bonnie. </p><p>“How can it mean anything when you haven’t brought it up in years?” Bonnie fired back. “You gave no indication that you wanted anything from me other than friendship.”</p><p>“Really?” Damon laughed. “Because the way I remember it, we did plenty of things friends don’t do. We said things friends don’t say, Bon.”</p><p>“Did you mean any of them?” Bonnie challenged. Damon stared into Bonnie’s eyes. He stood from the couch, exasperated. </p><p>“Of course I did. Maybe I didn’t say anything more because I was afraid.”</p><p>“Afraid of what?” Bonnie laughed, “You’ve never run from love before. In fact, you practically dive into it. So what’s different about me?”</p><p>“Everything.” Damon answered without missing a beat. “Everything is different. About you, about us. I’ve never felt the way I feel about you. Ever. I-- I thought I knew what love was. I let myself be consumed by it, I became obsessed. But with you...it isn’t like that.”</p><p>Bonnie scoffed, “Wow, thanks.”</p><p>“No,” Damon hurried to correct himself, “That’s not what I mean.”</p><p>“Then what do you mean, Damon?” Bonnie stepped forward. “For once, try not avoiding the truth or hiding it in thinly veiled humor or insults. What do you mean?” </p><p>Despite the heater being on, the room felt cold. Under Bonnie’s gaze, Damon felt the urgent need to hide. To run away. But he didn’t, not this time.</p><p>“I mean I think I love you.” Damon finally said, his voice barely a whisper.</p><p>Bonnie waited. She waited for the usual follow-up of “like Elena” or “as a best friend”. She waited for Damon to, once again, tell her that all that's between them is the platonic, friendship kind of love. </p><p>“I think I’m in love with you.” Damon continued, “And yes, that scares me. Because it’s different from anything I’ve felt before. And maybe I should’ve said something sooner, maybe my timing is the worst in the world. But you asked, and there it is. That’s what I was trying to say. That’s what I’ve been trying to say.”</p><p>Bonnie was rendered speechless for the first time since Damon knew her. Here stood this man, the man she’d hated for so long. The man who she’d come to know as her best friend, who she’d watched grow so much over the years. Who had worked his way into her heart while she tried so hard to lock him out. </p><p>But here they were, once again. The tension was so thick, she couldn’t ease it with a joke or an insult. She couldn’t ignore it anymore.</p><p>She stood there, her lips parted, her arms hanging at her sides. Any anger she’d had drained from her body.</p><p>“I wanted to ask you, you know.” Bonnie whispered.</p><p>“Ask me what?” </p><p>“To come with me. When I left Mystic Falls. I wanted to travel the world, and I loved it. Really, it’s been amazing.” Bonnie smiled, but then it faltered. “But it gets lonely.”<br/>
“I would have gone.” Damon said after a moment. “If you’d asked.”</p><p>“Maybe I wanted you to ask.” Bonnie shrugged. </p><p>Damon stepped closer again. </p><p>“Why now?” Bonnie asked. Her voice was no longer angry, just curious. After all this time, why dig up these old feelings?<br/>
Maybe they weren’t so old. How could they be, if they felt so fresh?</p><p>“Am I too late?” Damon asked. His voice as gentle as the hand he used to cup Bonnie’s face. </p><p>Bonnie’s eyes trailed up Damon’s body, landing on his eyes. “Better late than never.” She replied, a hint of a smile tugging on her lips. </p><p>Damon’s eyes wandered down to Bonnie’s lips, then back up again. She gave a short nod. Slowly, he leaned in. His lips hovering over Bonnie’s mouth, each of them breathing the other in. Finally, Bonnie closed the space, launching herself forward. Her arms wrapped around Damon’s neck, and his found their way to her waist. Their lips moved together in a familiar but new pattern, as if finding their way back after straying away from their path. Bonnie leaned into Damon, hands roamed to his neck, his face, his chest. Was she drowning in him or coming up for air? She couldn’t tell. </p><p>They broke apart only momentarily, pausing to breathe and meet eyes. When Damon kissed her again, they fell back onto the bed. </p><p>It was like the prison world in the sense that their bodies molded perfectly together, that their spirit and sense of urgency overwhelmed them. But it was different now, with all the questions answered. An underlying meaning. A promise.</p><p>The storm raged on that night, ice descending from the clouds and leaving the town in a formidable chill. Damon and Bonnie were the only ones who didn’t need a fire to keep warm that night. </p><p>They didn’t make it back to Mystic Falls for Christmas morning, Bonnie sleeping well into the afternoon. When she finally did wake, feeling more herself than she had in years, she smiled. She smelled pancakes.</p>
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